New Year’s Eve In New Hope-Lambertville: Masquerade Ball And Parties

NEW HOPE, PA — There's a number of ways to ring in the New Year in New Hope and Lambertville.

The Lambertville Station will be holding a formal Masquerade Ball to welcome 2023. The River House at Odette's will celebrate with a New Year's Eve party. And Stella of New Hope will serve a multi-course prix fixe menu from acclaimed executive chef Michael O'Halloran.

Here is a look at what's happening in New Hope-Lambertville:

• River House at Odette's, 274 River Road, New Hope. New Year's Eve Party, Saturday, Dec. 31 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Welcome the new year at River House at Odette's with a New Year's Eve Party. The party will will include a band, five-hour open bar featuring cocktails of the decade and free-flowing premium champagne, cocktail hour and hors d'oeuvres, a three-course plated dinner, dessert presentation and midnight breakfast. RSVP at 609-796-7022.

• Stella of New Hope is ending 2022 on a high note with a special New Year's Eve multi-course prix fixe menu from acclaimed Executive Chef Michael O’Halloran, recent winner of Beat Bobby Flay. From 5-11 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 31 guests will enjoy a five-course experience boasting locally-sourced ingredients and hyper-seasonal flavors with optional wine pairing. Dinner is $95/person with $45 optional wine pairing. Reservations for Stella of New Hope’s New Year’s Eve are required and can be made by clicking here.
• Lambertville Station, 11 Bridge Street, Lambertville, N.J. 08530. New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball, Dec. 31 from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. The evening will feature a cocktail reception, passed hors d'oeuvres, a five course dinner, live band, dancing and open bar. Formal attire and masquerade masks required. Call Jackie at 609-397-8300, ext 500 to reserve.
• Havana New Hope, 105 South Main Street, New Hope. Dec. 31 from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Reservations start at 6 p.m. The Seven Band will be playing from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Call for dinner reservations.
• The Logan Inn, 10 West Ferry Street, New Hope, Pa. Bid goodbye to the old year with brunch from 12 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 31 and a four course prix fixe menu from 5 to 10 p.m. Brunch will also be served on Sunday, January 1 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. For information or to reserve, click here.

Here are some additional events happening in and around Bucks County:

• Plumsteadville Inn, 5902 Easton Road, Pipersville. December 31 from 8 p.m. to Midnight. The Inn is hosting a New Year's Eve Celebration. There will be additional specials, complimentary champagne at midnight and a live performance by Mixed Company. Reservations are highly recommended. Call 215-766-7500 to make a reservation.
• The Narrows Restaurant and Bar, 2206 River Road, Upper Black Eddy, 18972, holds a New Year's Eve Celebration. A five course meal will be prepared by executive chef, Michael Kating, and pastry chef, Angela Keating. The cost is $90 per person.

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is, of course, the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Various cities have adopted their own iterations of the event — the Peach Drop in Atlanta, the Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho.

The end of one year and beginning of another is often celebrated with the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

The history of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who would make promises to return borrowed objects and pay outstanding debts at the beginning of the new year, in mid-March when they planted their crops.

According to legend, if they kept their word, pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. If they broke the promise, they would fall out of God’s favor, according to a history of New Year’s resolutions compiled by North Hampton Community College New Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves. The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report.

There are myriad reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse for gaining weight, for example, and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude and a plan to meet the stress and discomfort of changing a habit or condition.